Hot Android News Stories
News: Samsung Announces That You Can Sign Up for Early Access to New Bixby
If you're not familiar with Bixby, I don't blame you. The Samsung assistant was released two months ago with the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus. While users were excited about this Google Assistant-like feature, they were ultimately disappointed by the limited rollout of only some of Bixby's features. Now, Samsung is hopeful to perfect Bixby using you.
News: The First In-Screen Fingerprint Reader is Coming, But Not from Apple or Samsung
For months, consumers have been itching to know whether it will be Samsung or Apple that has the first in-screen fingerprint scanner in their next smartphone. Now, reputable researcher Jiutang Pan has taken to Weibo to report that the answer is neither.
News: How to Check Out the OnePlus 5 LiveStream
The hype is real surrounding the OnePlus 5. As of this post, over 300,000 people have registered for their chance to order the device next week.
Opinion: Gameloft Strikes Out with Asphalt Street Storm Racing
The Asphalt series has been a staple in the racing genre since its first incarnation all the way back in 2004 — I still remember buying it for my newly-obtained Nintendo DS. It warms my heart to see that, after all this time, Gameloft continues to produce mobile Asphalt games, releasing the latest for Android today. Unfortunately, that's about all Gameloft has taken from its previous efforts. To be frank, this game ain't good.
News: Over 160,000 People Have Registered Early to Get the OnePlus 5
Update 6/16: This number is now way higher. In just the first two days of this sale, over 350,000 people have pre-registered for the phone.
News: Lenovo Releases Image Hinting at Moto Z2 Announcement This Month
Right off of the unveiling of the Moto Z2 Play, it looks like Lenovo is gearing up to announce the highly anticipated Moto Z2.
News: In a Rare Moment, Pixel's Sales Figures Are Revealed
Savor this moment: we've got a confirmed number of sales for the Google smartphone. We say this because unlike most hardware manufacturers, Google refuses to share official sales numbers for their phone. Instead, during earning reports they simply bundle the product under Alphabet's "Other Revenues", leaving us in the dark about how successful the product is.
News: Google Launches 'Android Excellence' to Compete with Apple's App Store Revamp
Meet Android Excellence, Google's latest platform with the ability to showcase the highest quality apps and games on a quarterly basis. Sound familiar? It should.
News: Sony Xperia XZ Premium Smartphone Now Available for Pre-Order
Have you been watching out for Sony's latest smartphone entry? If so, you're in luck. Best Buy announced today that pre-orders have begun for the Xperia XZ Premium. If you're someone who has been waiting for this day ... order, order, order!
News: Google's Gboard Now Lets You Draw the Face You Want to Text
A new feature of Google's Gboard for Android lets users doodle an emoji in order to find it. The change was part of a few updates introduced earlier today.
News: Pixel 2 May Resemble Samsung's S8 More Than the Original Pixel
The latest trend in smartphone design is all about the display. Manufacturers want larger screens with smaller bezels. The rumors are heating up about Google's next big release, the Pixel 2, and with that, we may have a clue that shows us Google is hopping on the display train.
News: Qualcomm's Snapdragon 836 May Be Rolling Out with the Note 8
The leaks and rumors surrounding the highly anticipated Galaxy Note 8 just keep coming. But none have suggested that the new Samsung phone might be powered by a different chipset than the Snapdragon 835, until now.
News: Durability Test Reveals BlackBerry KEYOne's Screen Isn't Actually Glued to the Phone
We were really rooting for you this time, BlackBerry! With the phone company having minimal success in the past with smartphones, the BlackBerry KEYone was extremely promising. That is until YouTube Reviewer JerryRigEverything discovered a fatal flaw, the phone's screen popped off with just a bit of pressure and then stopped working. So...there's that.
News: After Leaks, OnePlus Puts It All Out There with OnePlus 5 Photo
Here it is folks, after weeks of constant leaks and speculation surrounding the highly anticipated OnePlus 5, the company has decided to release a high-res image of the new phone on the official OnePlus Google+ page.
Déjà Vu: Samsung Races to Unveil Galaxy Note 8 Before New iPhone
Nope, it's not 2016 again. Samsung is giving it another go at beating its competitor by attempting to unveil their new Galaxy Note 8 before the new iPhone. Because it worked out so well the last time.
The Leaks Were Right: Launch Date of OnePlus 5 Has Been Revealed
Finally, the much anticipated OnePlus 5 has got a release date. A few days ago, a leaked image from OnePlus suggested that June 20 might possibly be the launch date for the Chinese smartphone and today those leaks were confirmed.
A Song of Ice & Fire: Is Amazon Back in the Smartphone Game?
Winter is coming for Amazon. It looks like the company is having another go at the smartphone world with its release of new smartphones branded as "Ice".
Your Face, Beyoncé's Body: New Microsoft App Swaps Your Face into Any Picture
You may not have woken up like this, but you're still #flawless thanks to Microsoft's new Face Swap app for Android.
News: Snapdragon 660 Benchmarked Not Far Below the Galaxy S8+
Someone out there is testing an unknown mid-range phone codenamed "Heart," and it has a 16% lead in speed on the Oppo F3 Plus and is just 15% shy of the Samsung Galaxy S8+, according to GSM Arena.
News: Samsung Creates World's Most Breakable Phone Then Wraps It with Protection
After SquareTrade tested out the Samsung Galaxy S8 and found it to be the first phone to shatter on all sides after only one drop, it's nice to know we may have a solution for this $500 problem.
News: Rooters Beware, Google Will Soon Start Locking You Out of Apps
Yep, Google just put in place a new thing called the dun dun duuuun .... "Device Catalog!" No, not like the Macy's catalog of your smartphone dreams. This is quite the opposite.
News: Google Lens Will Turn Your Phone's Camera into a Smart AI Assistant
Google Assistant will be getting an AI makeover with the addition of Google Lens. This new feature is basically a set of vision-based computing capabilities within the Assistant.
News: Who Has the Best Camera of Them All? HTC U11 Apparently
The Google Pixel was just knocked off its pedestal as DxOMark Mobile's best smartphone camera, courtesy of the HTC U11. Ouch ...
News: Move Over, Galaxy S8 — LG Will Be Using OLED Panels for V30
Samsung has some competition as LG may be incorporating OLED panels for their new flagship V30 launching later this year.
News: Netflix Is Revolutionizing Streaming Quality as It Test Drives HDR with LG G6
The displays on all of our devices are getting better and better. TVs, smartphones (Infinity Display, anyone?) — any modern device you use, the screen looks great. So we should expect our content to live up to these fantastic displays. Netflix is attempting to do that, by implementing HDR video for LG G6 users.
News: Bogus WhatsApp Update Will Have You Seeing Red
If you ever get asked to update your WhatsApp to your favorite color, don't. It's probably spam. According to Reddit user Yuexist, a new WhatsApp adware is going around disguised as an update.
News: Someone's Testing Out Google's Taimen Device & It's Super Fast
More details about Google's latest Taimen device have been revealed all thanks to Geekbench. We already know that Google has been working on a tablet-like third device next to its original Pixel 2 lineup. Though, Taimen is not confirmed to be part of the Pixel 2 lineup.
News: Samsung Preinstalls McAfee Bloatware on Your S8 & It's Neither Great nor Free
Malware attacks on mobile phones are reaching an all-time high and it looks like companies like Samsung are doing all that they can to prevent any unwanted hackers from accessing its sensitive user data.
News: Google Teases Android O's Half-Dunked Code Name with an Enticing Easter Egg
Google loves to play games. That's just what they did when they went ahead and teased us with a few Android O hints after Reddit user Zitroney unlocked an Easter egg in a Google Creative Lab developer's app ShortStories.
News: Don't Even Think About Dropping Your Galaxy S8
If you shatter your new Samsung Galaxy S8 display, then be prepared to pay a hefty repair fee for that bezel-less baby.
News: How to Try Google's New Fuchsia OS on Your Android Right Now
Google's working on a new mobile operating system called Fuchsia, and while we don't know much about how they intend to use it, we're now getting a glimpse at what the main interface will look like.
News: False Advertising? Some Galaxy S8 Models Are Using Older Flash Storage Chips
All Galaxy S8 models apparently weren't created equal. According to numerous user reports, it appears that Snapdragon-powered Galaxy S8 variants are using an older flash storage standard than what Samsung was originally advertising.
News: OnePlus 5 Confirmed for Summer Launch, Will It Make Its Deadline?
In a series of news about the OnePlus 5, the company posted its first teaser of the upcoming device on its Weibo account. According to GSM Arena, the teaser doesn't show us any sneak peaks of what the phone might look like — co-founder Carl Pei took care of that — though, we are greeted with the caption "Hey Summer! Give me five!"
News: OnePlus 3T 128 GB May Be Discontinued
UPDATE: It was previously reported that the OnePlus 3T 128 GB in Gunmetal would be discontinued. GSM Arena received an official rebuttal from the company which noted that the phone is not discontinued, but rather, out of stock. Though, it seems like the company has more of a problem keeping track with what its reps report, rather than its phone supply.
News: OnePlus 5 Looks to Have a Rear Fingerprint Sensor
If OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei was trying to be slick about using the new OnePlus 5 phone — especially before its speculated summer release — well, he didn't do that great a job of hiding it from us.
News: Privacy Under Threat as More Android Apps Eavesdrop on Ads
Your Android phone could be listening to ultrasonic ad beacons behind your back. The unwelcome news comes year after app developer SilverPush promised to quit using its (creepy!) eavesdropping software.
News: After FirePhone Flop, Amazon Reenters Smartphone Market — but in a Much Better Way
Amazon's first venture into the wireless phone market was a crash and burn moment — and that's us being kind. Their FirePhone went down in flames almost instantly, no pun intended.
PSA: Don't Update Your Pixel if You're Rooted or Have Custom Recovery Installed
The May 2017 security update has begun rolling out to Nexus and Pixel devices, which is usually great news. It means that your device is now being updated to protect you from the latest exploits and vulnerabilities found in Android. At other times, though, security updates patch root methods like Dirty COW, which is extremely frustrating for users and developers alike. Especially since most OEMs don't condone rooting or even unlocking the bootloader on their devices.
News: Google Allo's Latest Update Adds Chat Backups & Group Incognito Mode
Google's Allo is still a work in progress, but the innovations to the chat and messaging app just keep on coming. The latest update rolling out now includes chat backups and a group incognito feature that we're very excited about.
News: T-Mobile Galaxy S8 Update Breaks SafetyNet & Android Pay
Everyone feels a little safer with Android's security updates, which are welcome and often necessary protective measures. But what happens when the update that's supposed to safeguard your phone actually ends up wreaking havoc with its security system?